With the passing of summer and the arrival of autumn, the days become shorter and the temperature drops again. These weather changes often coincide with symptoms of illness in humans. Cold, flu, or fever are often symptoms experienced around these times. Is it wise for an athlete to train when they are sick and experiencing cold, flu, or fever?
Training with a Cold
A cold is a common phenomenon caused by a cold virus. Often you notice that you have a cold due to a runny nose, sore throat, swollen mucous membranes, hoarseness, ear pain, and coughing. This is often accompanied by general fatigue and sometimes a slight increase in temperature can be observed. A cold is caused by a virus. Often it enters through the nose and is carried to the nasal cavity. This is also why the first symptoms and complaints, such as pain or a raw feeling, arise in the nasopharynx. Then the infection moves towards the nose and other complaints such as nasal congestion and runny nose occur. Some people also experience shortness of breath when they have a cold.
Training with the Flu
Flu is also caused by a virus, but not by a cold virus, but by the influenza virus. The symptoms of flu are often more severe than those of a cold, with high fever, coughing, and general misery being the first symptoms. In addition to these symptoms, people with flu often also suffer from headaches and muscle pain in various limbs. Flu mainly occurs in the winter months. The spread of flu occurs through the air or through the hands of people carrying the virus. There is an epidemic of flu when the number of flu cases in a certain area is much higher than usual for a certain period.
Difference between Cold and Flu
The differences between a cold and flu are often noticeable by the way the symptoms arise. With a cold, the symptoms often start gradually, whereas with flu they develop within a few hours. One of the most characteristic differences is body temperature. With flu, you often have a fever, whereas with a cold, this is sporadic. Flu affects your entire body, with muscle pain and general misery, while with a cold, the symptoms are local. Finally, with flu, you often experience extreme cold chills, which you will not have with a cold.
Training When Sick
When you want to train when you are sick, you must realize that your immune system is internally fighting viruses in the body. Your body is weakened because all energy is used to recover and get better. The advice when you are sick is therefore to rest and not to train. Often you notice that even when you do train, your body has more difficulty than usual with the regular routine.
When we want to give advice on whether it is wise to exercise or not, it is important to determine whether we are dealing with an infection with general symptoms such as fever and muscle pain or an infection that leads to complaints above the neck such as headache, throat pain, and a runny nose.
Often a cold is mistaken for a flu, but they are two completely different diseases. Both are caused by a virus and cause similar symptoms such as headache and sore throat, but they are 2 completely different diseases, which are also caused by different viruses.
When there is an epidemic of flu, the chances are high that you will quickly become infected because the virus can spread very quickly. This is because the virus is in the saliva droplets. When someone sneezes or coughs, these spread through the air or through physical contact such as through the hands.
Symptoms: Flu or Cold
Flu and cold are often seen as the same thing. Flu is caused by the influenza virus and often has more severe symptoms than a cold. It is often noticeable by the physical complaints you experience throughout your body and fever occurs. In addition to these symptoms, complaints such as muscle pain, headache, cold chills, and coughing also occur along with general fatigue.
Flu Symptoms
- Fever, often above 38 degrees Celsius
- Headache
- Muscle pain
- Cold chills
- Fatigue
- Stuffy nose
A cold, like flu, is also an infectious disease but is not caused by the influenza virus. Just like with flu, you will experience sore throat, swollen glands, headache, general fatigue, a runny nose, and often coughing. Fever rarely occurs with a cold.
Cold Symptoms
- Sore throat
- Coughing
- Sneezing
- Stuffy nose
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Mild elevation in temperature
Still Exercising with Flu and Cold
Exercising and training with flu can be very dangerous. After all, your immune system often does not work optimally and is weakened, and the energy your body has is used to recover and fight internally.
Exercising with a viral infection is still dangerous because the viral infection can move and reach the heart muscle, causing myocarditis. Therefore, take sufficient rest and give your body time to recover. Often the rule is that as long as you have been sick, you need double the number of days to recover before you can exercise again.
The Neck Check
Unlike flu, you could exercise with a cold as long as you do not have a fever. There is a simple way to find out whether you can exercise while you are sick: the neck check.
If the symptoms are above your neck such as headache, sore throat, or a runny nose, then you can exercise fine. Just don’t go for the maximum intensity but lower your intensity a bit.
If you also experience symptoms of illness below your neck, such as muscle pain, fever, and shortness of breath, then the advice is not to exercise. A common misconception is that you can sweat out the illness, but that is incorrect.
If you exercise too soon without fully recovering, it can have a negative effect and can also lead to overtraining. After all, your body has not yet fully recovered and cannot actually handle the effort of training. This can lead to overtraining but also make you more susceptible to other diseases. For example, an infection with the influenza virus can move to the heart muscle and cause myocarditis: an inflammation of the heart muscle. Inflammation of the heart muscle is very dangerous and can lead to arrhythmias and heart failure.
Relieving a Cold
Unfortunately, there are no miracle cures to quickly recover from your cold or flu. It’s a virus that you can’t sweat out. The advice is to rest often and drink well, especially with flu. In addition, antibiotics do not help against flu and colds because they are only effective against bacterial infections. So make sure to get enough (night) rest, warmth, and relaxation, and you’ll be back on your feet soon. Some tips to make your cold a little more bearable are.
Steaming
Steaming does not help fight the virus in your body but it does help relieve sore throat and stuffy nose as it can widen the airways. Make a steam bath with thyme or eucalyptus and throw a towel over your head so the steam bath can effectively do its job. Do this for about 10 to 15 minutes.
Sleep and Rest
Remember that the body is fighting the virus. This means that a lot of energy is lost in this fight and rest and sleep are incredibly important. Do not force things and try to take more rest so that your body can win this fight quickly.
Gargle with Salt
One of the oldest tips is gargling with salt to soothe sore throat. The saline solution in the water makes the mucus in the throat thinner and draws moisture from the infected tissues in the throat, relieving pain.
